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The first aim of this study was to explore whether children with obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) and subclinical autistic traits can be differentiated from children with OCD without these traits based on clinical OCD-related characteristics, distinct OCD symptom patterns, and type of comorbidity. The second aim was to investigate whether autistic traits predict immediate and long-term outcome of exposure-based cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) in pediatric OCD. The participants in this study were a total of 257 children and adolescents aged 7–17 years, recruited from Denmark, Norway, and Sweden as a part of the Nordic long-term OCD treatment study (NordLOTS). Inclusion criteria were an OCD diagnosis based on DSM-IV criteria and a Children's Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale (CY-BOCS) total severity score of 16 or higher. No children with a diagnosis on the autism spectrum were included. An Autism Spectrum Screening Questionnaire (ASSQ) cut-off score of ≥ 17 was used to define the group of OCD patients with autistic traits and all participants were treated with 14 weekly sessions of manualized CBT. Comorbid attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and tic disorders, subclinical internalizing and externalizing symptoms, lower insight into OCD symptoms, more indecisiveness and pervasive slowness, and ordering/arranging OCD symptoms were found to be significantly associated with having OCD with autistic traits. No difference was found between the groups on treatment outcomes. Results suggest that children and adolescents with OCD and autistic traits portray a different clinical profile than those without these traits, but that CBT is equally effective for those with and without autistic traits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aims of the study were to estimate the prevalence of body dysmorphic symptoms in a sample of children and adolescents with obsessive-compulsive disorder, possible clinical correlates and whether BDD symptoms predict poorer treatment outcomes after cognitive behavioral therapy. The study included 269 children and adolescents with OCD, aged 7–17 years, from Denmark, Sweden, and Norway, who were treated with 14 weekly sessions of manualized, exposure-based CBT. Twenty-one patients (7.8%) had BDD symptoms. BDD symptoms were associated with older age (p = 0.003) and a higher prevalence of comorbid anxiety disorders (p = 0.025). In addition, patients with BDD symptoms endorsed a greater number of OCD symptoms than did those without BDD symptoms. Having symptoms of BDD did not affect the CBT outcome on OCD. The results of the study suggest that CBT for OCD is equally effective for those with and without comorbid BDD symptoms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hoarding, common in pediatric obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD), has specific clinical correlates and is associated with poor prognosis. However, there are few studies of hoarding in pediatric OCD. This study estimates the occurrence of hoarding symptoms in a sample of children and adolescents with OCD, investigating possible differences in demographic and clinical variables between pediatric OCD with and without hoarding symptoms. Furthermore, the study investigates whether hoarding symptoms predict poorer treatment outcomes after cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). The study sample comprised 269 children and adolescents with OCD, aged 7–17 years, from Denmark, Sweden, and Norway, who were all included in the Nordic long-term obsessive–compulsive disorder Treatment Study. All had an OCD diagnosis according to the DSM-IV and were treated with 14 weekly sessions of manualized, exposure-based CBT. Hoarding symptoms and OCD severity were assessed with the Children's Yale–Brown Obsessive–Compulsive Scale and group differences in treatment outcome were analyzed using linear mixed-effect modelling. Seventy-two patients (26.8%) had one or more symptoms of hoarding. Comorbid tic disorders (p = 0.005) and indecision (p = 0.024) were more prevalent among those with hoarding symptoms than those without hoarding symptoms. In addition, youth with hoarding symptoms had a different OCD symptom profile. Having symptoms of hoarding did not affect CBT outcome (p = 0.933). Results from the study suggest that CBT is equally effective for those with and without hoarding-related OCD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lambek, R., Trillingsgaard, A., Kadesjö, B., Damm, D. & Thomsen, P. H. (2010). Gender differences on the Five to Fifteen questionnaire in a non-referred sample with inattention and hyperactivity-impulsivity and a clinic-referred sample with hyperkinetic disorder. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology 51, 540-447. The aim of the present study was to examine gender differences in children with inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity on the Five to Fifteen (FTF) parent questionnaire. First, non-referred girls ( n = 43) and boys ( n = 51) with problems of attention and hyperactivity-impulsivity and then clinic-referred girls ( n = 35) and boys ( n = 66) with hyperkinetic disorder (HKD) were compared on the FTF. Results suggested that non-referred boys were more hyperactive-impulsive than non-referred girls, whereas clinic-referred boys and girl with HKD were more similar than dissimilar on the FTF questionnaire. Secondly, it was examined whether the application of gender mixed norms versus gender specific norms would result in varying proportions of clinic-referred children with HKD being identified as impaired on the subdomains of the FTF questionnaire. Based on results it was concluded that the use of a gender mixed normative sample may lead to overestimation of impairment in boys with HKD, but the type of sample applied to define impairment on the FTF should depend on the purpose for applying the questionnaire. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]